Sword Douluo Chen Xin, Only Ranked Tenth?!

Jade Maiden Peak's back mountain, Repentance Cliff.

Shi Xuanfei sat alone on a boulder smoothed by the mountain winds. She wasn't wearing her usual elaborate Peak Master attire, only a simple green ruqun with a plain white cloak wrapped tightly around her. She gazed distantly towards Qingxia Mountain, shrouded in mist, lost in thought.

Yang Ning's quick thinking and meticulous analysis were indeed far beyond her expectations. However, he was ultimately an outsider, and could only guess at the general situation, not getting everything entirely correct.

She was, as Yang Ning had said, a person who valued emotions deeply. Every inner disciple on Jade Maiden Peak was like her own child, or like a younger sister needing her care. Every blade of grass, every brick and tile on the peak, held the shared efforts of her and her disciples. Even the unique graffiti outside the sleeping quarters, the blessings secretly written by the disciples, were treasures she held dear and would not allow to be desecrated.

Naturally, her feelings for Yun Zishan were even deeper, needing no further explanation. One of them was as cold as ice, the other as passionate as fire, yet due to their similarly peerless talent and unparalleled beauty, they had been the targets of secret jealousy and ostracism within the sect since childhood. It was in this environment that they supported each other, gradually becoming close friends who could talk about anything, and even like sisters, bound by the closest ties.

She truly did not wish for Yun Zishan to become Sect Master. Just as Yang Ning had analyzed, she firmly believed that Yun Zishan's personality had flaws, making her destined to be unable to handle the position. Yun Zishan was too principled, poor at socializing, cold and rigid, and inflexible... How could such traits possibly manage such a vast sect, balancing the complex interests between the Twelve Main Peaks and the Twenty Auxiliary Peaks?

She clearly foresaw that if Yun Zishan were to take that position, she would inevitably be exhausted and tormented day and night. And under her governance, the Sword Sect would have a high probability of declining. She simply couldn't imagine how her highly responsible and incredibly competitive Senior Sister would face all of this, fearing that damage to her Dao heart and the generation of inner demons would not be mere alarmist talk.

Her gaze turned to the old residence of Qingxia Mountain in the distance, sealed off for nearly a hundred years, and her thoughts drifted back fifty years.

It was on the eve of her Master, Qingxia Fairy, entering the Supreme Cave Mansion for secluded cultivation.

In her memory, her Master sat cross-legged on a cushion, gently stroking the head of Shi Xuanfei, who knelt before her, her voice filled with concern.

"Fei'er, that knot in your Senior Sister's heart... I fear I may no longer have the time to personally help her untie it. You two are like sisters. I only hope that in the future... you can help her more."

"But Master..." Shi Xuanfei's face was troubled at the time. "How... how can I help Senior Sister?"

Qingxia Fairy tightly clasped Shi Xuanfei's hand in her palm, her gaze loving. "Fei'er, you are naturally cheerful and open-minded, with a sharp mind. I trust you. But your Senior Sister... she is introverted and stubborn, and carries her burdens heavily. I have always been worried about her."

"Your Senior Sister will surely contend for the position of Sect Master in the future. But her personality... is truly unsuitable. Therefore, I hope... that in the future, you will compete for that position."

"Me?" Shi Xuanfei pointed to herself in surprise at the time, incredulous.

"Yes." Qingxia Fairy's tone was almost pleading. "I know you have no interest in that position. But if your Senior Sister truly becomes Sect Master, it will be no good fortune for her, nor for the sect."

"Your Senior Sister is strong-willed. I cannot speak these words directly to her, for fear of the opposite effect. Therefore, I can only place this hope on you. Your Senior Sister's obsession with this is merely to compensate for my regrets from back then. But you are also my disciple! As long as you take that position, your Senior Sister's knot can also be untied, and the sect can be handed over to a more suitable person... This is a way to achieve both."

The wind on Repentance Cliff was sharp and desolate. Shi Xuanfei subconsciously tightened her cloak, gazing at the sleeping quarters that held so many past memories. Recalling her Master's entrustment from that year, her eyes gradually began to blur.

She admitted that her feelings for Yun Zishan were extremely deep. She could also give up her beloved, leisurely life on Jade Maiden Peak to fulfill her promise to her Master that year, and participate in the sect master election that she found so tiresome. She could also dedicate her endless future years to the sect's complex and trivial affairs, exhausting herself.

She asked herself, she truly loved her Master, her disciples, and Yun Zishan. These people held more weight in her heart than she did herself. Just as Yang Ning had said, she loved others more than herself, and perhaps she herself didn't even know what love was.

But! She, Shi Xuanfei, absolutely had her own principles and bottom line! She would absolutely not do something as "disrespectful" and "seductive" as Yang Ning guessed, for Yun Zishan, or for that promise!